Why the West needs a wake-up call amid attacks in France

This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," January 9, 2015. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: Today, moments after the three suspected terrorists in France had been killed, French President Hollande -- he addressed the people, and this is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRANCOIS HOLLANDE, PRESIDENT OF FRANCE (through translator): We should refute any easy conclusion. Those who have committed those acts (INAUDIBLE) have nothing to do with Islam.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: Nothing to do with Islam.

Joining me now with reaction, Blue Force Tracker editor and former U.S. Air Force special ops pilot Nolan Peterson is with us. From the Heritage Foundation, Nile Gardiner is with us, and Act for America president and terrorism analyst Brigitte Gabriel.

We heard this from the president. ISIS is not Islamic. It's almost, like, knee-jerk at this point.

BRIGITTE GABRIEL, ACT FOR AMERICA PRES.: ISIS is Islamic. In their 10-page document, they mention Islamic verses 26 times! So, he cannot say it is not Islamic. And who gave them the expertise to talk on behalf of Islam? They don't even read the Quran in Arabic. And this all started with President Bush, Sean. President Bush immediately after September 11 said Islam is a religion of peace. So did Tony Blair. They did not know what they were talking about, and they misled their population...

HANNITY: Submission.

GABRIEL: Submission. Islam. The word in Arabic is "Islam." Islam is submission. "Salaam" is peace. But a lot of Westerners, because the two words sound very similar, Islam and salaam, they think salaam is peace. And it is very wrong. It is submission to Islam and nothing else!

HANNITY: You know, if you look around the world, Niles -- you know, we can look at America, France, or you can look at Great Britain, Nigeria, Mali, Libya, Kenya, Somalia, Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Pakistan, Afghanistan -- I can't even name all the countries -- violence in the name of Islam. And yet there's this denial, constant nonstop denial! Why?

NILES GARDINER, HERITAGE FOUNDATION: Well, that's a very good point. I think that Francois Hollande, the French president, is in a complete state of denial with his statements earlier today. The same goes for President Obama. And the deadly threat that the West faces today is driven by Islamist extremism. It is religiously motivated violence. It is the greatest threat of our generation, and we really need to rise up to the challenge.

Unfortunately, Mr. Hollande clearly is not up to the task. In many ways, France has become a basket case under socialist rule. And we need strong, robust leadership on both sides of the Atlantic. Unfortunately, with Mr. Hollande and President Obama -- they're both politicians in a deep state of denial. And this is a war that we simply have to win. We cannot win this war with policies of appeasement!

HANNITY: Yes, Nolan, aren't -- isn't the world in a state of denial and that there's -- there's very few people that seem willing to just state what is an obvious truth, especially on the left? I mean, I can name two people, Bill Maher and Bob Beckel. I don't really know any other people on the left that will take that position.

NOLAN PETERSON, BLUE FORCE TRACKER: Well, I think what President Hollande said was naive, but I also have a different take on what he was trying to say. I don't think he was necessarily addressing French Muslims. I think the French president recognizes that his country is on the brink of cultural collapse.

HANNITY: Wait. So in other words, he's maybe afraid that the 751 no-go zones have now -- that if they come out against this, that this is going to create an outright war in their society, a cultural conflict? Is that what he's saying? He's afraid to say that?

PETERSON: Well, I think...

HANNITY: He's afraid to do what the cartoonists were not afraid to do?

PETERSON: Well, aside from the rise of the threat of Islamic terrorism in Europe, there's also the rise of far-right ultranationalist political parties, like the Front Nationale, who are very violent and who are known to be anti-Semitic, and they even apologize for the Nazis. And so I think what Hollande...

GABRIEL: You cannot...

PETERSON: ... recognizes...

GABRIEL: ... compare the two! You cannot compare the two! You have to understand that we are fighting Islamic radicalism worldwide! Islamic radicalism is with leadership, weak leadership on the part of America or Britain or France or Germany or any Western nation! How do we have a chance of winning this war? We are fighting a cancer growing within our midst, and people in Western nations need to develop the backbone to stand up and fight!

This is what made the West great! Westerners and Western civilization became great nations and great civilizations because of the strength, because of the intelligence and because of the tolerance and love! But tolerance does not mean we let people walk all over us! Tolerance does not mean we surrender! America, last time I checked, was the home of the brave!

This is the time we need all to come together as Western nations because we are all attacked by Islamic radicalism! They hate us all regardless of what passports we hold, regardless what our skin color, regardless what language or what accent we speak, whether we speak (INAUDIBLE) or whether we speak English! We are a target, and all of the West needs to come together, throw political correctness in the garbage and fight to win this war!

HANNITY: All right...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I agree.

HANNITY: I appreciate you all for being with us. Thank you, Brigitte. Good to see you.

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